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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/23733736">Homecoming</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/theirprofoundbond/pseuds/theirprofoundbond'>theirprofoundbond</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Supernatural</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>15x12, Canon Compliant, Cuddling, Dreamhunter, F/F, Fluff, Found Family, Hugging, Missing Scene, Reunion, Wayward Sisters, canonverse</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-05-03</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-05-03</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-03 00:01:59</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>3,834</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/23733736</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/theirprofoundbond/pseuds/theirprofoundbond</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>After another dead end in Yosemite, Claire returns to Sioux Falls, where she finds the last person she ever could have expected.</p><div class="center">
  <p>—</p>
</div>“Before we go inside,” Jody says, breaking into Claire’s thoughts, “you should know we’ve got someone staying with us for a while.”<p>Claire shoots Jody a look, but it’s more amused than annoyed. “Please don’t tell me you’ve taken in another lost soul.”</p><p>“Maybe, maybe not.”</p><p>“You didn’t give away my room this time, did you?”</p><p>“No,” Jody says with a smile. She reaches out and squeezes Claire around the shoulders. “Your room is still your room. But if you want to share it…”</p><p>“Yeah, right,” Claire says, pushing open the front door.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Kaia Nieves/Claire Novak</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>30</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>97</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Homecoming</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Thank you to my beta readers <a href="https://baldilockssmileysunshine.tumblr.com">baldilockssmileysunshine</a>, <a href="https://wearingmywings.tumblr.com">wearingmywings</a>, and <a href="https://weirddorkycastiel.tumblr.com">weirddorkycastiel</a> for their invaluable help!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Claire parks behind Patience’s Jeep, turns off the ignition, and deflates with a huge sigh. She lays her head back on the headrest and stares up at nothing, trying not to think about how she’s spent the last three weeks chasing yet another dead end, and trying to focus instead on the fact that she is going to try again.</p><p>She has to.</p><p>When Claire finally lifts her head, she sees Jody on the bottom front step, arms folded over her chest—not like she’s mad, just loosely, waiting.</p><p>Once, Claire wouldn’t have picked up on the nuance—or she would have chosen not to, maybe. She would have seen the crossed arms and been bracing for a fight, which inevitably would have caused one. But Jody’s gotten a lot better about being over-protective, same as how Claire’s gotten a lot better about being reckless.</p><p>Still. She glances at her reflection in the rearview mirror. Her hair’s coming loose from her ponytail, there are dark circles under her eyes, and her mouth has an unhappy downward curve to it... but it’s a good thing she’s not covered in bruises. Although if it had meant finding Kaia’s murderer, she’d accept a lot worse than being painted black and blue, and whatever argument that might have led to.</p><p>Claire feels the weight of disappointment resettle itself on her heart, a little more heavily than last time. She sighs again, just a small, resigned sound. Something about looking for revenge for two years naturally wears a person down.</p><p>She opens the car door and gets out, pulling her hair from its ponytail and shaking it out as Jody strolls down the driveway.</p><p>“Welcome home,” Jody says, smiling.</p><p>Claire manages a smile back, and when she catches sight of the fading bruises on Jody’s face she raises her eyebrows. “Usually I’m the one with injuries I have to explain. What happened to you?”</p><p>“Ran into a little trouble, that’s all.” Jody shrugs a shoulder. “Come here,” she says, opening her arms, her smile widening.</p><p>Claire rolls her eyes and hugs her. “You sound like me,” she says, grinning a little. When she pulls back she narrows her eyes at the bruises. “For real, though, you’re okay?”</p><p>“And now <i>you</i> sound like <i>me</i>.” Jody gives her a look. “I’m fine, I promise. Glad to have you back here.”</p><p>“Yeah, well.” Claire is pulling her things out of the trunk, not looking at Jody. “I got nothing again. I’ll probably head back out as soon as I’ve got another lead.”</p><p>Jody doesn’t say anything to this, and Claire is grateful for her acceptance. When she closes the trunk and looks over at her, Jody’s just watching her, smiling faintly. “What?” Claire says, frowning.</p><p>“Nothing,” Jody says, taking one of Claire’s duffels from her. That little smile is still stuck in the corner of her mouth. “You can stay however long you want.”</p><p>Claire nods—she knows. But she can’t just sit around while that woman is still out there. They start up the driveway, and in Claire’s mind she’s running through the mantra that has beat like a pulse through her veins for two years, become part of her: <i>Kaia died for me. She got left behind. I’m going to kill the woman who killed her.</i></p><p>“Before we go inside,” Jody says, breaking into Claire’s thoughts, “you should know we’ve got someone staying with us for a while.”</p><p>Claire shoots Jody a look, but it’s more amused than annoyed. “Please don’t tell me you’ve taken in another lost soul.”</p><p>“Maybe, maybe not.”</p><p>“You didn’t give away my room this time, did you?”</p><p>“No,” Jody says with a smile. She reaches out and squeezes Claire around the shoulders. “Your room is still your room. But if you want to share it…”</p><p>“Yeah, right,” Claire says, pushing open the front door.</p><p>She steps inside and slings her bag to the ground, glimpsing Patience at the dining room table with a laptop and notebook. “Hey, nerd,” Claire calls, stooping to unlace her boots.</p><p>“Hey, stubborn,” Patience replies, smiling.</p><p>“Whatcha workin’ on, psychic stuff or school stuff?” Claire wanders over as Jody comes in and closes the door behind her.</p><p>“School stuff.” The taskbar on Patience’s laptop is crammed with windows but right now she’s staring at a blank document titled “Dartmouth Application Essay.” Claire spies a window labeled “Dreamwa…”</p><p>Claire’s lips twitch and she makes a mental note to ask Patience about it later. For now she just raises an eyebrow and says, “Dartmouth, huh?”</p><p>Patience looks embarrassed. “Yeah… It’s really far away, though, and—”</p><p>“So what? Get typing, lady.”</p><p>“Thank you,” Jody says. “That’s what I’ve been telling her.”</p><p>“Is Alex around?” Claire asks.</p><p>“Yes she is,” Alex says, breezing in from the kitchen, wearing her scrubs and carrying a lunch bag. “But she’s headed to work.”</p><p>“Hello to you, too.”</p><p>“Relax, we’ll catch up later,” Alex says. She turns to Jody and gives her a pointed look. “Our guest is in the back yard.” And then she’s slipping out the door with a grin and an upbeat “See you, guys,” and Claire is weirded out because what’s she so happy about?</p><p>“Claire, why don't you go say hello,” Jody says.</p><p>Patience ducks her head and refocuses on her laptop, but Claire can see she’s trying—and failing—to suppress a tiny smile behind one hand.</p><p>Claire’s beginning to get the feeling that everyone’s in on some joke—everyone except for her. Annoyance flairs, and she feels a stab of insecurity. So what if they’re all here together all the time, making up inside jokes or becoming besties with the new person or whatever. She’s used to being on the fringes. Who cares. She’s gonna be back out on the road soon, anyway.</p><p>Claire sighs. “Fine.” As soon as this is over she’s going upstairs, shutting herself in her room, and looking for the next lead.</p><p>Claire stalks into the kitchen and yanks open the back door. There’s someone standing on the porch, looking out over the back yard. Claire takes in the slight figure, the tumble of dark hair—a girl?— and then Claire is stepping outside, and the person is turning, startled, and the person is Kaia.</p><p>The back door swings shut with a bang and the entire world freezes, the two of them staring at each other with equally surprised expressions.</p><p>The tiniest noise escapes Claire; it’s an astonished breath that sounds like “Kah,” but all of the air has left her lungs.</p><p>Kaia bites her lip and smiles shyly. “Hi, Claire.”</p><p>And that smile shatters Claire into a million pieces. Because here she is, the girl who opened up about her scars, her fear, the girl who slipped her hand into Claire’s and trusted her, the girl who pushed her out of the way and <i>died</i>—</p><p>Claire swallows. “Is it really you?”</p><p>Kaia just nods.</p><p>Claire closes the distance between them with a single step, pulling Kaia into her arms, barely able to breathe. Of everything Claire has ever lost, nothing, no one, has ever been returned to her—not truly, not for good. But Kaia is warm, and real, and Claire closes her eyes and presses a hand to the back of Kaia’s head, her fingers threading through those beautiful curls.</p><p>“I thought you died,” Claire whispers. “I thought you were dead.”</p><p>“Nope,” Kaia says, and there’s a smile in it. She slips her arms around Claire’s waist and Claire feels her relax into her embrace. After a moment, Kaia adds, “That place has been trying to kill me my whole life. But in the end I was tougher.”</p><p>“I’m so sorry,” Claire says, breathless. She pulls back to look into Kaia’s eyes but she grips her arms, unwilling to let her go. “I’m so sorry. I said I would protect you…”</p><p>“It’s okay,” Kaia murmurs. She lifts a hand, hesitates for a second, then gently tucks a lock of hair behind Claire’s ear. “I’m okay.” She meets Claire’s eyes and smiles, and Claire’s heart is beating wildly and she can’t think of what to say, so she just hugs Kaia close again. And Kaia wraps her arms around her, turns her head and kisses Claire’s cheek softly, and Claire doesn’t know who’s clinging to who, anymore; they just hold on to each other and neither of them lets go for a long time.</p>
<hr/><p>Claire and Kaia are on the back porch, the two of them crammed side by side onto one of the steps leading down to the back yard, bumping elbows and knees. They aren’t saying much, but both of them seem okay with that.</p><p>They only go inside when the light starts to go dim. Donna arrives to stay for the weekend, and she has a gigantic hug for everyone. Alex picked up Chinese food on her way home from work, and the table is pleasantly crowded with the six of them around it. Donna has them all in stitches, telling them about a regular visitor to the drunk tank, and Claire keeps sneaking glances at Kaia, sitting across the table from her. She can hardly wrap her head around the fact that she is really, actually there, laughing along with the rest of them. It makes Claire glow to see that in the time it took her to get back from Yosemite, Kaia has clearly been welcomed into her little family.</p><p>And then after dinner, Claire helps Jody clean up while everyone else is hanging out in the living room. She can hear snatches of conversation as she loads the dishwasher: Donna giving Patience advice about her application essays, Alex telling Kaia about her shift. It’s all pretty normal—normal enough to be incredibly boring, even. But it’s the first time Claire really feels like she’s there with them, and not peering in at them through the hole in her heart like someone on the other side of a fence. She goes to Jody and hugs her wordlessly, and she knows Jody understands, because neither of them say anything, they just stand there and Jody rocks Claire in her arms a little.</p><p>Finally Claire draws back to look at Jody, and she’s smiling, but her voice is soft and serious when she says, “Thank you.”</p><p>Jody just beams and touches Claire’s cheek. “It makes me happy to see you happy.” Claire’s smile broadens and she blushes a little. She never talked about how she felt about Kaia, but she knows Jody understands that, too.</p><p>And then there’s a movie—a comedy, because comedies are easy and light and all of them know that life often isn’t, and tonight what they want, and what they deserve, is laughter.</p><p>This is what Claire is thinking about when she resurfaces, lying in her bed. She is thinking about the six of them laughing so hard at one point, they had to rewind twice just to catch whatever followed the thing they were cracking up about. She is staring up at the ceiling, smiling at the memory, and then a second later she is clapping a hand over her mouth to stifle a sob as tears well in her eyes, catching her completely by surprise.</p><p>For the first time in a long time, there’s nothing tugging at Claire to make her want to leave—everything she needs is right here in this house. And all the pieces are clicking into place: all those knowing smiles that made Claire feel like an outsider were never about exclusion. Jody and Alex and Patience, they were excited for her, anticipating her happiness. Because they’re her family, and they love her.</p><p>Overwhelmed, Claire curls up on her side, hugging her stupid Grumpy Cat, crying as quietly as she can because she doesn’t want to freak anyone out, even though the rush of emotion has her a little freaked out.</p><p>But she lets it happen, because she realizes that it’s a sort of cleansing. She’s reached a turning point, and it’s time to wash some things away. Make room for new feelings.</p><p>Tears are still streaming down her cheeks when there’s a soft knock at her door. Claire sits up and the door opens a crack. Kaia pops her head in.</p><p>“Claire? Are you… I heard…”</p><p>Claire sniffs and nods quickly, wiping her eyes. “I’m okay. Are you okay?”</p><p>“Can I come in?”</p><p>“Yeah, sure.”</p><p>Kaia slips into Claire’s room, carrying a box of tissues, and closes the door quietly behind her. She hands the tissues to Claire, and Claire laughs softly, takes one and blows her nose. </p><p>She turns her pillow over to the dry side and scoots over. Kaia gets in and they both lie down on their sides, looking at each other in the dark.</p><p>“Did you have one of your dreams?” Claire asks after a moment.</p><p>“No,” Kaia says, shaking her head a little. “I got up to go to the bathroom and I heard you.”</p><p>Claire hides her face behind a hand and groans. “I was trying to be quiet.”</p><p>“You were quiet,” Kaia says. “But my senses are a little sharper, after a couple years in that place.”</p><p>“Yeah,” Claire murmurs. “I guess they’d have to be.” She looks at Kaia, thinking that she must be different now, from everything she went through. But in a lot of ways she still seems the same. Like she’s still Kaia, like she didn’t become the lookalike woman Claire was hunting all this time.</p><p>“I don’t dream about it anymore,” Kaia says. “The Bad Place, or those things that used to chase me. I think it’s all gone.”</p><p>“Gone?”</p><p>“Yeah. I don’t think it exists anymore. Sam and Dean said God is destroying all the alternate worlds, and it sure looked like it was ending when I was getting out of there.”</p><p>Claire feels a chill at this, but she goes for levity. “Well, I hope God doesn’t destroy this world. It’s where I keep all my stuff.”</p><p>“Like this guy?” Kaia smiles and stands Grumpy Cat up in between them.</p><p>Claire grins. “Grumpy Cat is a girl, actually.”</p><p>“A girl, huh? Well, then, Grumpy Cat is even more important than I thought. This world needs to be preserved at all costs.”</p><p>They both laugh. Claire’s head hurts a little from crying, but she feels better, and she’s glad it’s Kaia who knocked on her door. Sure, Claire is drawn to her and wants to be around her, but even aside from that, being around her is just easy—easier than with some of the others, in a way.</p><p>They settle into a comfortable silence, just like on the back porch step, and Claire’s thoughts wander.</p><p>But then something occurs to her. “Hey,” she says, nudging Kaia.</p><p>“Hey,” Kaia replies, nudging her back.</p><p>“If all the other worlds are being wiped out, does that mean you won’t be able to dreamwalk? Like, at all?”</p><p>It takes Kaia a moment to answer. “Yeah, I think so. And honestly?” She raises her eyebrows at Claire. “If anyone had ever told me that I might never be able to dreamwalk again, that would’ve been the best thing they could have said to me. That was all I ever wanted, ever since I was little. Because I only ever went to the Bad Place.</p><p>“But back before everything got really messy, Jack showed me what dreamwalking could be.” She falls silent, as if she’s seeing it all over again. “It was so beautiful,” she says softly, a touch of awe in her voice. “After a lifetime of the worst nightmares you could imagine, it was just incredible, to see that dreamwalking could be something good, something… transcendent, you know? That was the first time I ever felt okay about being a dreamwalker. I felt hopeful.”</p><p>Kaia stops talking and plays with the edge of the blanket, but Claire can tell she isn’t quite finished yet so she says nothing. But she reaches out and strokes her thumb along the side of Kaia’s hand, encouraging her to go on.</p><p>“When I was in the Bad Place, I thought I was gonna be stuck there forever,” Kaia says finally, looking at Claire again. “So I practiced. I figured maybe I could reach somebody, but even if I couldn’t, then I could just enjoy being somewhere else for a while. I didn’t have any guidance or anything so I kinda sucked at it, but I was getting there. I caught glimpses of things, felt the sun on my skin sometimes. So… now? I’d hate to think I could never get any better at dreamwalking, or that I could never visit those places again. Patience has been helping me do some research, and we’ve been contacting other dreamwalkers to see what they think about what’s going on.” Kaia shrugs. “Maybe there’s still hope.”</p><p>Claire rolls onto her stomach, props herself up on her elbows, and smiles down at Kaia. “You’re kind of amazing, you know that?”</p><p>Kaia laughs and rolls her eyes, like this is the most ridiculous thing she’s ever heard.</p><p>“I’m serious, Kaia,” Claire says, and something in Claire’s eyes must make Kaia see that she means it, because the skepticism fades from her expression.</p><p>“Yeah?” she says, with that shy little smile that makes Claire’s heart trip over itself. Claire just nods. Kaia says, “I always thought you were amazing.”</p><p>Now it’s Claire’s turn to roll her eyes. She shakes her head and presses her face into the pillow. “I’m not amazing,” she says, muffled. “I’m a mess.”</p><p>A couple of seconds pass, and Claire, with her face still hidden in the pillow, regrets what she’s said. Her tone was too heavy, and the lightness of their conversation can’t withstand the weight.</p><p>But then Claire feels Kaia’s hand on her back. “Is that why you were crying?” Kaia asks softly.</p><p>For a second, Claire doesn’t respond, but then she shifts, lying on her side to face Kaia again, and Kaia slides her hand from her back to rest on her arm. They just gaze at each other, the nighttime quiet settled over them. Claire’s eyes wander over Kaia’s face: proud angles softened by an overall delicateness that makes Claire ache to reach out and pull her closer, brush her fingers over Kaia’s skin…</p><p>But instead she lies still, and looks into Kaia’s eyes. They are dark and lovely, compelling and yet patient. And somehow, Claire manages to not look away when she whispers, “I was falling for you.”</p><p>Kaia is the one who looks down, and Claire feels a flutter of fear, but Kaia is moving her warm hand over Claire’s arm, and taking her hand, and then Kaia looks up at her again with an unreadable expression on her face.</p><p>So Claire continues. “I know we didn’t have the chance to really get to know each other. And it’s been two years, and neither of us are the same people we were. But I just… I felt that. And then I lost you.” Claire purses her lips as tears threaten behind her eyes, but she pushes on. “I’ve been all tangled up with this… this grief, and regret, because I <i>failed</i> you. I swore I was going to kill the thing that killed you. And when I found out she looked like you, it kind of terrified me. Because I didn’t want to watch you die all over again.” Tears are slipping down Claire’s cheeks now and she takes a deep breath to try and steady herself.</p><p>“But I’ve spent the last two years looking for her. For revenge. It was practically all I could think about. Only now you’re here,” Claire says, a laugh escaping her through her tears, and she squeezes Kaia’s hand. “You’re alive, and you’re <i>here</i>, and it’s time to let all of that stuff go. But it’s hard because I’ve been holding onto it so tightly. So that’s why I’m a mess. I mean, my whole life has been a mess.” Claire rolls her eyes. “But I’m definitely a mess right now.” She sniffs and swipes roughly at her tears, and she can’t quite look Kaia in the eye when she adds in a small voice, “And I hope I haven’t… y’know. Freaked you out by telling you all this stuff.”</p><p>Another tear slips out of the corner of Claire’s eye, and Kaia reaches up and wipes it away. “I’m not freaked out,” Kaia says. “My freakout threshold these days is crazy high.” She grins, and Claire laughs a little.</p><p>“And I don’t think you’re a mess,” Kaia continues. “If you’re a mess, I’m a mess. We’re both starting over. We can do it together.” Kaia smiles at her, and Claire smiles back, nodding.</p><p>A beat passes, and then Kaia’s smile turns a little teasing. “You were really trying to avenge me for two years?”</p><p>“Yeah,” Claire says, a little grudgingly. “And you’re not allowed to make fun of me for it, okay?”</p><p>Kaia turns onto her back and stares up at the ceiling dreamily. “That’s like, the most romantic thing ever.”</p><p>“Shut up.” Claire rolls her eyes and shoves at Kaia.</p><p>Kaia laughs and looks over at Claire. “No, I’m seriously so flattered right now.” Her grin fades and is replaced by that adorable little smile. She says, “The feelings were mutual, you know.”</p><p>Claire was hopeful, but she’s still surprised. “Oh, yeah?” Her tone is perfectly casual, but her face feels hot and she has to remind herself to breathe.</p><p>Kaia smiles. “Yeah.” She turns on her side again, takes Claire’s hand, and brings it to her lips to kiss.</p><p>Claire’s heart flutters in her chest and she closes her eyes for a moment, marveling at how whole she feels. When she opens her eyes again and looks into Kaia’s, she wonders for a second if she should kiss her. But as much as Claire loves the adrenaline rush of a hunt or a fight, she likes the idea of being able to just take it slow. And right now, there’s no urgency, no life-or-death. So she decides, <i>not yet</i>.</p><p>Instead, she rolls onto her back and opens her arm invitingly, and Kaia snuggles up close. Claire wraps her arm around her, kisses the top of her head, breathes in the scent of her hair.</p><p>“It’s so nice to feel safe,” Kaia murmurs. “I feel safe with you.” She finds Claire’s free hand and laces their fingers together.</p><p>Claire swallows hard at this, that Kaia could feel that way with her after what happened. “I feel safe with you, too,” she says softly. And she does.</p><p>For so long, Claire has felt like jagged edges all over, made up of the broken shards of her life and her heart, sharp enough to cut herself and everyone she cares about. But now, holding Kaia in her arms, she feels soft, and she feels new, and she wants to never let go of what’s been returned to her.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Thank you for reading! This was something I simply had to write, and I hope it made your heart feel happy ❤️️</p><p><a href="https://theirprofoundbond.tumblr.com/post/617132119982030848">Here’s a tumblr post for this fic</a> if you want to like or reblog 😊</p><p>Please feel free to <a href="https://theirprofoundbond.tumblr.com">say hi to me anytime</a>; I would love that!</p></blockquote></div></div>
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